Uncharted territory
by Eko47
Summary: When Mike Stoker and Hank Stanley decide to help out Mike's dad they find that they got more than they signed up for in this crazy journey through the world of the supernatural. This story covers ten days of confusion and stationhouse mayhem. Includes Chief McConike and the hat burning incident.
1. Chapter 1

AN:

Ok, I am writing another story, and it's almost finished, so I decided to give y'all part of it. I got the idea for this from watching way to many xfile episodes. Hopefully I was able to explain it all well enough and believably enough. This is just for fun, I have had this idea bouncing around in my head for a while and wanted to write it out. Let me know what you think and I'll post the rest as soon as I can. Thanks in advance for any reviews and cc.

I only own the unrecognizable characters.

Enjoy

Hank Stanley walked into the day room. Paperwork was piled to the ceiling and he wanted a cup of coffee to help him relax before he got back to it.

"Oh yes I can!" Johnny retorted. His glare was settled on the phantom, who was casually sipping coffee and smirking behind his mustache. "Just because I don't take many girls on second dates doesn't mean I can't. I just don't wanna."

"Any girls, Gage. Never one that I can remember. You should be more like me. I have the charm and finesse to handle the ladies. You gotta admit it, Gage, I have it, you don't."

Hank cleared his throat and sat down at the table.

"Anyone want to grab me a cup of coffee?" He asked, looking at no one in particular. Johnny jumped to get him a cup and placed the steaming mug in front of him. Hank paused to sip it before nodding his thanks. Several minutes passed, with Roy flipping channels on the tv and Marco turning pages in the newspaper. Johnny squirmed in his chair and Chet leaned back to balance on the back legs of his seat while twisting his mustache between thumb and forefinger.

"Don't let me interrupt your conversation, guys." Hank said. Johnny almost instantly was on his feet and said "I'm gonna go shine up the squad." And disappeared into the bay. Chet dropped his chair back onto it's front legs and stood, stretching. "I guess I'll go shoot some hoops. Marc, you wanna join me?" he asked. Marco set the newspaper aside and followed him out. Roy kept his eyes on the television.

"Ok, I give up. What did I do?" Hank asked, standing and pulling a chair over to sit in front of Roy.

"Sir?" Roy asked innocently.

"None of that, Roy. All I did was come in and everyone clears the room. Except you, though I expect you would have too, if you could have thought of an excuse."

"Actually," Roy said, leaning forward to switch the tv off. "I stayed behind because I thought you might want to talk."

"About what!?" Hank exclaimed. "I'm not the one acting bizarre. It's you guys."

"Then where's Mike?" Roy asked, leaning back as a look of understanding passed over Hanks face. "Cap, you haven't even noticed he wasn't in the room, did you? I don't mean to be pushy, but you bit his head off earlier over a little mistake."

"A mistake is a mistake. And it was a rookie mistake. All I did was call him on it." Hank said defensively. "Alright, so maybe I was a little hard on him." he sighed.

"Cap, you yelled at him. In front of us, all those bystanders. Can you imagine how embarrassing that would be? He disappeared as soon as we got back to the station. Right after you slammed your office door."

"Well, he won't make the same mistake again, I guarantee that." Hank said coolly. He knew he had gotten to angry, but he had had a bad morning and just wanted to relax, and a time consuming error was just what he needed to lose his cool.

"Cap, you've been upset this morning, I get it. We all have bad days. But I don't think you are the only one having a bad day. You were stuck in your own little world. And I saw something you missed."

Hank shifted uncomfortably. "What do you mean?" He felt panic rising in his chest. He always tried to look out for his men and be there for them. If he hadn't been there...

"When Mike came in this morning, he didn't look so good. Upset, or tired. I dunno. He asked me if you had gotten in yet, and I said no, why? He said he needed to talk to you. He wouldn't tell me what was wrong, so when you got in about five minutes later I told him to go see you. He went to see you and do you remember the first thing you said to him?"

Hank drew a deep breath. He remembered. And in context with what Roy had said, he was regretting it more and more.

"You said, 'this coffee stinks. Make it right this time." While dumping it into the sink and leaving the room. He made more coffee. And then he went out to check over the engine. He never did have that talk with you."

Hank groaned and put his face in his hands. "I've really messed up, haven't I?" He asked.

"I think you can fix it." Roy said. "Mike was cleaning the latrines, like you told him to earlier. He might still be in there.

Hank stood slowly and headed toward the door. He pushed the door to the latrines open and frowned. Mike wasn't in there. He headed to the dorm room and looked in. There at the end of the room, Mike was sitting on his bed. A piece of paper was laying on the bed in front of him, but he wasn't looking at it. Instead, he seemed to be a hundred miles away, his right hand clenched at his side.

Hank took a cautious step into the room.

"Mike." When his engineer looked up, he immediately saw what he had missed. Hurt, confusion. He moved closer and Mike looked away, clearly expecting Hank to still be angry with him.

He pulled the paper closer and folded it in half, keeping his eyes on it to avoid looking at Hank.

"Cap, I'm sorry, for, um, what I did earlier. I wasn't paying attention and it could've been something more..."

"Mike, stop." Hank said. "I, I came to talk to you. But not about what you did. I've been a fool, and I came to apologize."

"For what, sir?" Mike asked.

"For the way I spoke to you earlier. For the fact that I didn't see that something was wrong. Roy told me. That you wanted to talk to me."

Mike stood up suddenly and turned away from Hank. His hands were shoved in his pockets. Hank glanced at the sheet of paper lying on the bed.

"Mike, I'm sorry. For what I did, and for not being there for you."

Mike turned back, but his expression was unreadable.

"Cap, you didn't do anything. Of course I forgive you. I, I just need some time."

"Can you talk about it?" Hank asked gently. "Has that letter anything to do with it?"

"Yes. But, I don't know. I don't even know how to talk about it. Friday I got a phone call. While I was here, remember? I took it in the dorm."

"Yeah. You were gone for a while." Hank frowned. Mike had seemed more serious after the phone call, but not like anything was actually wrong.

"Well, uh, it was my Dad. He..."

At that moment the tones went off.

Station 51 possible fire at the Bank. 1475 Northridge dr. Time out 13:27

Hank ran out to the bay with Mike behind him. He grabbed the mic and confirmed the call. Mike had already pulled his turnout coat on and was in the drivers seat. Chet and Marco were glancing between their captain and engineer. Hank looked over at Mike as he pulled out into the street. Whatever he was feeling was hidden behind a mask of complete concentration.

Mike knew there wasn't time for personal feelings during work. He had made the mistake of letting his mind wander back to his dad just at the end of the last call, and he certainly wasn't going to do that again. He drew in a deep breath and focused on the road, while quickly going over in his mind where the closest hydrant to the bank was. If the fire was confirmed, he would have to hook up fast, so they could clear the building. As they pulled up in front of the bank, he could not immediately see smoke, but there was a group of at least seventy people standing outside, and the crowd was growing. Mike slowed to a stop in front of the hydrant as an officer jogged over to the engine and waved Hank out. After a moment, Hank signaled for them all to come over.

"There's no fire." The officer repeated. "One of the customers hit the alarm when a guy came in swinging a handgun around. It's already over." He pointed toward a body draped in a sheet near the doors. "He wasn't gonna kill anyone, but he sure acted like it. Forced us to shoot him."

"Suicide by cop." Hank said, shaking his head.

"Hey, man, I've seen all the crazies before, but this guy. I thought I had made a connection, y'know. I got him talkin'. He even admitted he had a grandkid he wouldn't mind seein' again. But then, you know. Well, I lost him. He wouldn't listen anymore. Put his gun to a girls head. We had to take him out."

Mike turned and went around to the drivers side of the engine and climbed in. He picked up the mic and called the station in as available. A few minutes later, Hank and the others climbed in and they started the drive back to the station in silence.

As soon as they arrived, Mike jumped down and started towards the dorm, but Hank caught his arm and guided him toward his office, shutting the door behind them. The others took the queue that they were not to interrupt and headed for the day room.

Inside, Hank pointed to a chair as he rounded his desk to take his own seat.

"Mike, you started to talk to me before we got that call. Something about your dad. What's going on? Is everything all right?"

Mike leaned his elbows on his knees and looked at the floor. Finally, taking a deep breath, he sat up and looked at Hank.

"You are gonna think I've lost my mind." He said bluntly.

"What?" Hank asked.

"So my dad has always been a little, um, eccentric, I guess. He kinda believes in supernatural stuff."

"Like ghosts?" Hank raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, like ghosts. Or anything really, that can't be logically explained or scientifically proven."

"So, aliens? Vampires, werewolves, etc.?"

"Yeah. And he loves to study anything about it he can find. He'll follow up on clues, sightings, anything he can. I never believed in it, but, he's my dad, so I didn't think he was crazy like everyone else said."

"Mike. You referred to your dad in the present tense, but your feelings in the past tense. Do you now think he's crazy or somethin'?"

"No! No, I think I might be. Let me tell you what happened and, uh, try not to laugh."

"Ok, shoot." Hank leaned back in his chair. Mike didn't often tell stories, and getting him talking was the hardest part of any conversation, after that, he was just like all the other guys. He had his doubts, insecurities, and quirks. _Especially quirks_ , Hank thought.

Mike stood and walked to the window as he began, seeming to be going back in his mind to what had happened over the weekend.

"My dad called me at the station on Friday. I took it in the dorm..."

"Hello?"

"Michael, this is Michael, right?"

"Yeah, dad, how are you doin'? I was going to call you tomorrow. Did you have a change of plans?"

"Plans? Uh, no. Um, I just wanted to call."

"Oh, ok." Mike frowned, his dad had called him Mike or Mikey for his whole life. With the occasional use of his middle name, Carson. He could never remember his dad calling him Michael before.

"Wait? You let your dad call you Mikey?" Hank interrupted. "You growl at anyone who calls you that."

"Yeah, well, he's my dad. So he gets special liberties." Mike said.

"And Carson? I had no idea." Hank smirked.

"Do you wanna talk about my silly middle name or do you want me to tell you this story?" Mike growled coming around to face Hank with his sternest glare.

Hank put his hands up. "Sorry, proceed."

Mike rolled his eyes, but continued.

"Well, um," His dad continued, pulling him from his reverie. "What have you been doing with yourself lately? Got any girls in your sights?"

"Um, dad? I haven't done anything new since last night when you called." Girls? His dad and he had made a pact years ago that they wouldn't talk about girls unless he found one that he was serious about.

"I called you last night? I must be losing it, I don't remember."

"Ok, what!? Dad, are you ok? I mean you called last night because you had something really interesting you wanted to show me when I get off work tomorrow. And you already forgot?" Alarm bells were definitely going off in his head now.

"Um, yeah, I mean I remember, sure. You're coming over tomorrow?"

"Yeah." It didn't sound like he was asking for confirmation. More like he hadn't known it beforehand. There was definitely no way he wasn't coming now. He was seriously worried about what his dad had done that would make him act this strangely.

"Ok, dad, listen, just hang loose. I'll be by tomorrow around noon probably. I'll bring your favorite pizza, so just, uh, take it easy I guess."

"Pizza? Hey, I like you. How did I get so lucky? You're a good kid."

"Yeah, I'm 28, so not really a kid anymore. See you tomorrow."

Mike hung the phone up. Talk about spacey. That was strange. He spent the rest of the evening trying to decide if something was actually wrong or if he was just overthinking it. After all, his dad had always been a little different. Maybe he was so into something he was researching that he was just over tired.

The rest of the shift went by smoothly and Mike headed home at about 8:30 a.m.

He pulled into his driveway and jumped out to grab a few books he had found that he wanted to give to his dad, and on the way back to the truck he grabbed the mail from his mailbox. Mostly junk, with a letter from his dad. Postmarked five days previous.

At this point, Mike pulled the folded paper from his pocket and passed it to Hank.

"It might be easier if you just read it." He said. He knew what the letter said. He had read it enough times.

Mike,

I'm sure you aren't interested in getting mail from your old man. And you're probably wondering why I didn't just call. The truth is, I am not ready to call until I have all the facts, but strange things have been happening. Right here at home if you'll believe it. I have searched all over the place. Traveling to almost all of the fifty states, but it's here in my own backyard that it gets truly strange. By the time you get this letter, I will probably have all the details. I have been trying to recreate this specific event for almost a month now and I almost have it. I have found a glitch in time. And it seems to be recurring, so I should be able to undo anything that it does, but before I play with the proverbial fire, I am going to find out what to do to reverse the effects. It'll be a wonderful experiment. You might even enjoy it if it all works according to plan.

I'll call you soon,

Dad

"So what does all this mean?" Hank asked, folding the paper and handing it back over.

"That's what I wondered. My dad used to talk to me about a ton of different things, like how the world worked. How there are some specific places where there are actually glitches in the universe."

"Glitches? What's that mean." Hank asked.

"Well, you know about the Bermuda Triangle?" Mike asked. "How people have disappeared without a trace and when people go in to search for them, they go missing too."

"I've heard of it. I never really gave it any credibility though." Hank said. He honestly couldn't believe he was having this conversation with his rational, logical, even headed engineer.

"Well, that would be a glitch. That's the most famous, but my dad has found cases of other strange things in other places. And from what I understand, he thinks he found one right near where I grew up. I guess he was so busy looking in other places, that he didn't even think about our hometown."

"They say the strangest things happen right at home." Hank smirked. "So what does this glitch do?"

"That's what I don't know. He didn't say, and uh, well, I never could follow all his explanations anyway. It could be anything, it could have a specific time that it will happen. It could be just the right things happening at just the right time or in the right order to bring about an unexpected event. I don't really know."

"But, you don't believe this stuff do you?" Hank asked incredulously.

"No, I have never believed it. But I do believe that something strange happened. Because no sooner had I pulled into the driveway at home..."

Rock music was playing loudly from the garage when Mike pulled up. Mike glanced over the two story house that he had spent the first nineteen years of his life in, and taking the key out of the ignition, he got out of his truck.

He headed up towards the open garage door and looked in. No one was there, so he went through the garage and opened the side door, stepping into the familiar mud room that he had spent to many Saturday afternoons cleaning when he would have preferred to be out playing football with the guys.

"Dad!" He called. A moment later there was an audible crash followed by a curse word that he knew his dad would never say.

"Uh, Hey! Dad? Everything ok?" He had to raise his voice over the loud music behind him.

Heading through the kitchen and into the living room, he found his dad with a wrench in one hand and an old toaster in front of him. The crash had obviously been the toolbox falling off the couch, as he could see the tools scattered from the couch to the front door.

"I don't think you're gonna fix that thing with a wrench." He said stepping forward, trying to ignore the grease and rusty marks that were now on the couch where the toolbox had been.

"Wha!?" His dad jumped to his feet, wrench lifted like a weapon. Mike jumped back a step.

"Whoah, dad. It's just me. I called, I guess you didn't hear me?"

His dad lowered the wrench and sat down. "Oh, Michael, right?"

Not again! Mike groaned. "Yes, Dad. What's wrong with the toaster?"

"Well, nothing, actually. I found all these tools in the garage, along with a sweet stereo. So I decided to mess around for a while."

Mike was trying very hard not to say something he would regret, but his dad was acting like he wasn't even familiar with his own house. And since when did he take toasters apart just to kill time? His favorite thing to do when he wasn't researching, was to build devices that helped him in his search, like reading heat signals, finding high areas of supernatural activity, or recording sounds that were unable to be heard by the human ear. Toasters had never been on the list.

"Dad," He said, pulling his dad to sit on the couch. He sat in the armchair across from him and looked into his dad's eyes. "What's going on? If you need help, I'll help you. But you gotta talk to me. Why are you acting so, so, strange?"

His dad sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Finally he looked up and said solemnly.

"Michael, I'll be honest with you. I don't know what happened. I only knew this was my house because the address was on my drivers license and the keys were in my pocket."

Mike leaned forward studying his dad's face for a moment. When he didn't say anything, his dad continued.

"I, don't know what to say. I feel like an impostor. Here I am, living in your dad's house. Using his debit card to buy food. Watching his tv, and driving his car. And instead of a snappy, ungrateful wife, and an uninterested teenage daughter, I have a son. A grown son who cares about me. Asks me if I need anything. Notices when I'm not myself. How could this happen to me? It's the luckiest thing that could happen to me, but I know I'm going to wake up, and it'll all be a dream."

"What are you talking about? You're acting like you're not you. You're acting like, you don't even know me."

"I don't." His dad sighed. "I've never seen you before."

Ok, thanks so much for reading this far. If you enjoyed it, please leave a review and feel free to follow me so you'll get updates when I publish other stories or add to this one. I love cc as long as you're nice about it.

Eko47


	2. Chapter 2

Authors note-

Hi everyone, thank you so much for your reviews on the last chapter. Here is chapter two, I hope ya'll enjoy it. As a side note, I learned that debit cards weren't used all that much in the '70s, but they did exist, so I'm not going to change anything about that.

Guest reviewer - Thank you for your review, I am glad you are liking it so far. Enjoy the new chapter.

As previously noted, I only own unrecognizable characters.

"What are you talking about? You're acting like you're not you. You're acting like, you don't even know me." Mike asked

"I don't." His dad sighed. "I've never seen you before."

Mike sat back suddenly, regarding his father differently now.

"Dad, that's poor taste. Even for you. This is not a joke." Right? because it had to be a joke.

"No, it's not a joke. My name is James, James Garcy. I only met your dad, Mark for about fifteen minutes two nights ago. It was Thursday. My wife and I were driving down the highway, and I saw a car pulled over. We stopped to see if he needed any help and he said he was studying inconsistencies in the space of time, or something like that. I didn't understand most of it. But a moment later I felt like I had gotten a zap of electricity or something, and I looked up and I wasn't me anymore. I was looking across at myself, and my wife said that we should leave the loony guy and go home. But when I tried to tell her that I was me, she looked at me like she thought I was crazy and she grabbed the other guys arm and he tried to tell her that he wasn't her husband, and she slapped him. I guess I was glad not to be me for a minute there, and I watched them leave. But afterwards, I realized that I had no idea who this other guy was, and that I was him now. I didn't think it was possible, so I drove down to the diner to see if my regular waitress would recognize me, and when I went in, she called me Mr. Stoker. So I have been living his life ever since, and enjoying it if I do say so myself. I mean, the guy is retired! What's not to love? You know, I still get a little bit of a shock when I look in the mirror and see another man staring back at me. Creepy actually."

"I still don't believe any of this, but I would like to meet this Garcy and see what he has to say." Mike said. The more this man talked, the less it sounded like a joke.

"So," Mike said, with a sigh. "We went down to visit Mr. Garcy, his wife opened the door and when she saw my dad, she got quite angry about him showing up. I told her why we had come, so she shut the door and a few minutes later she came back and said that her husband was working in the basement and wanted us to go away so he wouldn't have any distractions. I came home the next morning, and that evening I got a phone call from a man that claimed to be my dad, but the voice didn't match. He said that he was ready to talk to me, and to come back after today's shift was over."

"Are you going?" Hank asked.

"Yeah, I need to get to the bottom of this. Find out what's going on." Mike said.

"Listen, Mike. You don't really believe all that do you? I mean, how can two people switch bodies? It isn't real! That sort of thing only happens in stories."

"Yeah, well this is real life and all I know with any certainty is that the man that I spoke with was not my dad." Mike said, sitting down in the chair across from Hank.

"Or, it could be two middle aged guys playing a joke to see if they can fool you." Hank said, a smile tugging at his lips.

"No, my dad doesn't play around with this. He really believes it."

"Ok, so, you're going to drive almost three hours to see your dad and find out if you can put him back in his own body, correct?"

"That's about it." Mike said.

"Well," Hank said, suddenly feeling adventurous. "Mind if I come along?"

"Umm, sure. I mean, if you want to."

"Yes! I have got to see this. Mike Stoker out chasing aliens should be worth my days off."

"It's not aliens, but if you want to come, that's fine with me."

The next day found Mike and Hank pulling into the driveway of a large two story house.

"So this is where you grew up?" Hank asked. "It's beautiful."

They stepped out of the truck and headed up the steps to the front of the house. Everything was quiet this morning and the humidity was creating a fog in the distance, making everything seem just a little surreal. Mike opened the door using the key he carried and they went in.

"Hey Mike." Hank whispered. "If this isn't your dad, shouldn't you knock?"

Mike hesitated as though the thought hadn't occurred to him. After a moment he shook his head.

"No, it's still my dad's house. And technically, this guy is an impostor, so it's not his house."

He went across to the kitchen and opened the cupboards.

"Man! This guy definitely eats more junk than my dad does. I guess he doesn't realize he has diabetes."

"Let's hope he doesn't get your dad's body killed before we can get him back in it." Hank laughed.

"Shut up. This is actually serious you know. Quit acting like Chet." Mike growled.

Hank gaped at Mike, but followed him back to the living room. At that moment, Mike's dad walked down the stairs, stopping suddenly at the bottom.

"Oh!" He exclaimed. "I was unaware I was going to have guests. Sit down, please. Do you want some coffee Michael? And who is this, is this another son?"

"No, I don't want coffee, this is my boss at work. Listen, my dad called the other night and he will be over here soon, so why don't you just read a book. We need to figure this out."

"Very well, but I want some breakfast first. Frankenberries* anyone?" He held the box of cereal up, seemingly pleased with his choice. Mike stepped over and grabbed the box, tossing it back onto the counter.

"I'll make you some breakfast so that you don't kill yourself." He said, grabbing a pan from the cupboard and some eggs from the fridge.

"What do you mean? It's not going to kill me." His dad griped.

"You have diabetes. You can't eat all that sugar." Mike sounded like he was trying to reason with an incorrigible child.

About thirty minutes passed in which Mike finished making eggs, bacon, coffee, and toast and his dad ate it, admitting that it was actually very good. And then the door opened.

"Well, no one is knocking today." Mike's dad said, standing up.

Mike looked at the newcomer. He was younger than his dad by at least fifteen years, taller and thinner, with black hair and sharp features. The man immediately went across to Mike and grabbed him in a hug.

"Mikey!" He exclaimed. Hank choked on his coffee and covered his mouth trying not to laugh.

"Mikey, I'm enamored that you came back. I was truly sorry that I couldn't talk to you on Saturday, but you know how I get. I was so close, but I needed all of my concentration, I couldn't allow for a single mistake. You know how I hate mistakes. Anyways, I think I have finally found out the way to reverse this. It isn't convenient at all, and everything happened ahead of schedule, which was a pity, I wanted you to be able to see it happen. And you, Mr. Garcy, I pity you. I have been unable to do a thing without your wife telling me what a terrible husband I am. And I didn't have a good excuse to tell her why I've been sleeping on the couch instead of in the bedroom, but once this is all over you can go back and make amends I'm sure."

Hanks jaw dropped. No wonder Mike hardly ever talked. Any conversation with his dad was completely one sided and no one could get a word in edgewise. He was still going on, trying to explain about what had happened and why when Mike put his hands on his dad's shoulders.

"Dad!" He said, a little louder than he normally would have. "Dad," This time quieter as his dad fell silent. "Ok, you convinced me. You look nothing like him, but you are definitely my dad. No question about it. But slow down and tell me how we are going to fix this."

"Oh, right." His dad said. He glanced at Mr. Garcy and continued. "We are going to have to rearrange the meeting exactly as it happened so that when the glitch happens again, we will be there and the switch will undo itself."

"How often does that happen?" Mike asked.

"Every five days. I've been studying it very carefully, trust me. I was worried that we would have to find a more special way to reverse it, but from all my research and testing, I am confident that at the exact time and place, with us in the right positions, it should reverse itself."

"What did you want me there for?" Mike asked.

"So you can observe! So you'll finally believe what I've been telling you for years! That these strange anomalies do exist in the real world and that we can explore them. It's fascinating! Truly fascinating! You will be so intrigued. It's going to be like nothing you've ever seen before!"

So they went very meticulously over everything, right down to what they had had in there pockets, and Mike's dad went to get Garcy's wife since she had also been there. And as everything fell into place, Mike and Hank stood a few yards away watching what would happen as the sky darkened. It was twenty-seven minutes past sunset when it happened. The air felt electric and after a moment, when it stopped, Hank looked to his left and realized that Mike was no longer standing there. He turned to his right and felt suddenly like he was seeing a ghost. There, standing next to him, was himself.

"What in the...?" He started. He watched as the other man stared back at him in confusion. After a moment, realization dawned. "As I live and breath!" He gasped. "Mike! Is that you?"

"Yeah, is that you Hank?"

"How could this happen? It's just not possible!" Hank exclaimed.

That was when Mike's dad came over and grabbed Hank by the shoulders.

"It worked! Mike, I am back in my own body! See? Wasn't that great! We should do it again!"

"We did do it again." Mike said.

Alright, Full disclosure, in the authors note in the first chapter I told you that I had watched too many x files episodes and that's where I got the idea for this. If you are interested in the one that gave me the idea, it is called 'Dreamland' and the main character, Mulder gets switched with a not so nice (Or nice looking) guy who proceeds to mess with his life while living in his apartment, leaving Mulder to deal with his increasingly angry and hurt wife and kids. It's really a fun one to watch, and it's two parts fyi. I changed a few things about Mike and Hanks experience (and Mike's Dad and Mr. Garcy's) Is that there was no space ship sending out weird signals that brought it about, rather than undoing, the phenomenon is simply repeating itself, and they remember it happening afterwards. If anyone gets confused later on in the story, I will have an additional note to help unconfuse you :) Hopefully this isn't as confusing as Shakespeare's comedy of errors.

* Frankenberries, a cereal my dad remembers eating while growing up during the '60's and '70's. I wanted Mr. Garcy to have something that was definitely not good for him, similar to frosted flakes, which is my dad's favorite.

Thank you for reading! Please review and I welcome cc.


	3. Chapter 3

Authors Note-

Hi everyone, so sorry it took so long to update but my computer had a problem that had to get fixed, but it's all better now :)

In this story it might get a little confusing, so I am going to try to make it as unconfusing as possible for you. When Mike and Hank got switched, they are still them, just in a different body, right? So even though Mike looks like Hank, he is still called Mike in the story. Hank is called Hank even though he looks like Mike. When they are alone, or with someone who knows what happened, they call each other by their real names. In other words, Mike calls Hank 'Hank' even though he looks like Mike. When they are with people who don't know what happened, they switch names. Mike calls Hank 'Mike'. Hopefully it won't be too confusing. Please enjoy the story and any cc is appreciated. I went through and fixed any to, too, errors that I found. Let me know if I missed any.

Thank you so much for reading and reviewing!

"How could this happen? It's just not possible!" Hank exclaimed.

That was when Mike's dad came over and grabbed Hank by the shoulders.

"It worked! Mike, I am back in my own body! See? Wasn't that great! We should do it again!"

"We did do it again." Mike said. His dad turned from Hank and stared at the man next to him.

"No!" He gasped. "Mikey? Is that really you? How? I thought that, I mean, I didn't think this would happen."

"You weren't reversing anything dad, it was just doing it again. It can't reverse."

"So," Hank said slowly. "You can, uh, fix this. Right?"

"We'll have to set this up again in five days. I will find out what I can to make sure it is right, but I think I can fix this."

To Hanks surprise, Mike was grinning like a Cheshire cat.

"What?" He exclaimed. He was too frustrated with the situation to find anything funny about it.

"Cap! I get to be the captain! For five glorious days, I get to be you!"

Hank's jaw dropped. "What about my wife? She won't recognize me. She'll think she's married to you!"

"Oh." Mike frowned thoughtfully. "I hadn't thought of that."

"If you want to hear my advice," Mike's dad said. "I just played along as best as I could, without doing anything that would make her husband angry. It did make her angry, because she thought I didn't love her, but..."

"No!' They both exclaimed.

"The last thing I want to do is mess up Hank's marriage." Mike said.

"You could call and tell her you're staying at your place tonight." Hank said.

"Ok, that's just confusing." Mike pointed out.

"Just say, Hey babe, I'm staying at Mike's for the night." Hank said.

"Ok, first, I think no matter how good of friends we are, if I call your wife babe, you're gonna deck me. And second, that only covers the first night. This is going to be a problem for five nights."

"Well," Hank counted on his fingers quickly. "Actually, it will only be a problem for two nights. We'll stay at your dad's place tonight, your place tomorrow, and we'll be at work. It'll be the next two nights that we have to worry about."

"Oh no!" Mike said. "The day for reversing this back again is Sunday. We work on Sunday."

After a long pause, Hank frowned. "I guess we'll have to find a way to get the day off. Also, not a word about this to anyone. They'll think we have completely lost it."

Thursday morning dawned bright and clear, as Mike pulled into the stations back lot. He missed his truck, but had switched the channel in Hank's station wagon to the station he liked. He got out and looked around to see who all was there yet. So far it was just him.

 _Perfect._ He thought. _Just like a captain should be. Early._

He headed inside, and captain Dick Hammer looked up from his coffee.

"Hank, good morning. How were your days off?"

 _Eccentric._ Mike thought, but instead, "Relaxing. How was your shift?"

"Oh, not too busy. I am ready to go over the logs if you are."

"Ok."

Mike followed him into the office and sat down as Hammer went over what needed to be taken care of, what was already done, and he droned on and on. Mike let his mind wander to what this shift would turn out like. Hank had promised to give him any advice he needed. And Mike had offered to do anything with the engine that Hank needed reminding with. But Hank had seemed to be getting comfortable in Mike's life and had even expressed his excitement about driving the engine.

"Hank?" Hammer asked.

 _Oops. That tone of voice says he has asked that question at least once without me noticing._

"Yeah?" Mike asked. _I really need to get better at answering to Hank._

"Do you have any questions?" Hammer asked.

Mike shook his head and stood the leave the room.

"Alright then." Hammer extended his hand. "Have a safe shift."

"Thank you, sir." Mike gripped his hand. Hammer glanced at Mike with an odd expression, but said nothing about the fact that his equal had called him 'sir'. As soon as Hammer had left, Mike let out a deep breath and went around to the other side of the desk. Being a captain had never been high on his list of goals, but he hoped that he would be able to pull it off for just one day. He looked at the paperwork still piled on the desk and absently hoped that Hank would offer to help him out. He took the first one and started working on it, Noticing that his handwriting was still the same as it always had been. At least there was that. Everything else was different.

"Cap?" Chet poked his head in the door.

Mike looked up. "Morning, Chet." He smiled and sat up straighter.

"Can I come in?" Chet asked.

"Sure." Mike said.

Chet walked in. He stood in front of the desk. Mike waited for Chet to begin, but when he didn't Mike said, "Is there a problem?"

"Yeah," Chet said sitting down. "Roy talked to you, last shift, about Mike. Right?"

Mike nodded slowly. _Where was this going?_ He wondered.

"Well, he was acting kind of strange then, but he's acting stranger now." Chet said. A hint of a smile played at the corners of his mouth.

 _Oh, no! Wouldn't it be just like Hank to do something bizarre while everyone thinks he's me?_ Mike sat up straighter. "Strange, how?"

"Well," Chet said. "First he came in opened your locker and then slammed it muttering something about still getting used to something. Then he opened his locker, and went through every single thing until he found his badge. And when he came into the day room, he asked Johnny to get him a cup of black coffee, and started out looking at the news section of the newspaper instead of the sports section. Oh, and you know how he doesn't usually talk a lot? Well, he is now. I think he met a girl, and it's making him act strange."

Mike turned away slightly so Chet wouldn't see that he was trying not to laugh. Finally, he stood.

"It's not a girl." He said, heading out to the day room. Chet followed, confused.

Mike pushed the door to the day room open and stepped in. Johnny jumped up and poured him a cup of black coffee. Mike added sugar, not caring that the guys were all staring, wondering when he started putting sugar in his coffee. Hank tapped his watch and Mike nodded.

"Roll call in five, guys." He said, sitting at the table and grabbing the sports section of the newspaper.

All the guys were exchanging glances behind his back, but Mike ignored what he knew they were doing and finished his coffee. They headed out into the bay and lined up next to the engine. Mike smirked as he looked them over.

"Ok, Mike," Mike said. He scratched his head. It would never be less strange to call someone else by his own name, "You get latrines today."

"What? How is that fair?" Hank exclaimed. Glaring daggers at Mike, daring him to do it.

Mike ignored the fact that Hank would probably get even with him next time when he was back to being himself, but he couldn't pass up the chance.

"And Marco, kitchen, Chet dorms, John and Roy, Take care of the bay. Oh, and Mike, Get this engine polished up. She's looking less than perfect." Hank rolled his eyes and said "whatever." and they headed off to do their jobs. Usually, the captain would attack the paperwork in the morning, but John and Roy watched as Mike grabbed the polishing rags and started cleaning Big Red. They shrugged at each other and started checking supplies in the squad.

"So what do you think is going on? With Cap and Mike, I mean?" Johnny asked, keeping his voice down, but it was just loud enough for Mike to hear.

"I don't know. I can't work it out. But two strange shifts in a row is kind of different."

Mike kept polishing the engine and let them talk. He didn't really care, in fact, it was kind of funny, if he thought about it. They would never believe the truth, and any reason they gave for the strange behavior would be met with equal skepticism.

It was almost noon when they got their first run of the day. The tones went off for a gas leak at a residence off of Lime st.

Marco and Chet ran in from the back lot. Mike and Hank came from the day room and Mike headed for the drivers side of the engine. Hank grabbed his arm and pushed him toward the call station.

"Let them know we're gonna go!" He hissed loudly.

Mike grabbed the mic and confirmed the call.

Hank pulled on Mikes turnout coat and jumped into the drivers seat, a moment later Mike climbed into the Captains seat and Hank pulled out with the squad right ahead of them. Mike leaned over and said under his breath

"Cap, you have such an old man body. You need some oil on these joints."

Hank let go of the steering wheel with one hand long enough to smack Mike on the side of the head.

They drove the rest of the way with the sirens blaring and Hank wearing a childish grin at getting to drive the engine.

When they arrived at the house, they saw the front doors and windows were open and a mother with two children sitting on the curb. The mother stood as they pulled up and Mike jumped down.

"I smell gas." She said, arms wrapped around herself as though she were frightened.

"When did you start smelling it?" Mike asked.

"About ten minutes ago. I sent the children outside and called you right away."

"Alright, just wait here, we'll check it out." Mike said. Chet and Marco were already getting geared up to go in. Mike grabbed his SCBA and geared up along with them. Just before raising the mask to his face, he turned to the others.

"Hank stay with the engine." He said. Johnny's jaw dropped.

"John, Roy, check out the mom and kids, make sure they didn't breath anything in." Mike said, pulling the face mask up and heading into the house.

Johnny turned to Roy. "Did you hear what he said? Did I not tell you they're acting weird?"

"Yeah, but we have work to do right now." Roy said, grabbing their boxes from the squad. Hank couldn't help the smirk that had appeared on his face.

Chet was checking the basement and Mike went into the kitchen. He took one look at the stove and saw that the gas was on on the stove. He headed over and turned it off. He lifted his ht and raised his voice to be heard through the face mask.

"Chet, Marc, I got it." After that, it was just a process of airing the place out.

The family was alright, but Roy suggested they still go to their family doctor for a checkup.

They had to wait around until it was aired out, so they hung out next to the engine.

Johnny, Roy, Marco, and Chet were huddled in a little group talking under their breath and Mike and Hank were over next to the gauge panel. Hank leaned back against the panel and Mike pulled him away from it.

"Don't do that." He said.

Hank frowned and sat on the fender. "You know Mike, you slipped up earlier and called me Hank."

"I know." Mike said, sitting next to him. "To late now. Maybe they didn't notice."

"What do you think they're over there whispering about?" Hank asked.

Mike sighed. "Well, maybe they just think you're crazy, not me."

Hank laughed. "If you mess up my reputation, I'll mess up yours."

"I'm just glad I got switched with someone I trust. Wouldn't it be awful if I had gotten switched with a bank robber or something? He'd get off scott free and I'd be sore put to it just to prove my innocence." Mike said.

"Yeah, man, this could be dangerous. I hope no one else figures out how to do this." Hank said.

"To be honest, I still feel like this is all a dream. It just doesn't feel real." Mike said.

"No. No, it doesn't." Hank stood. "You should probably go check the house now. I'm sure it's aired out by now.

When they got back to the station, Mike headed to the office to do paperwork while Marco started lunch. Johnny and Roy headed out to the back lot to play a game of basketball.

Hank, in the meantime, was finding out that the guys were a lot more open around each other when the captain wasn't in the room. He was sitting in the day room, after cleaning the latrines, and doing the crossword in the paper.

"You know," Chet said, reaching for another potato to cut up while he helped Marco make stew for lunch. "There was this adorable chic at the beach yesterday."

"Really?" Marco asked. "What was she like?"

"Oh, you know, she was tall, and dark, and just so..." He paused and Hank felt eyes on him. "Mike, you would have liked her. She was a lot like that girl that talked to you last month at the corner market."

Hank shifted. _Oh, was there a girl Mike liked?_ He thought. "Oh?" He asked. At a loss for what else to say, and realizing that it was a very Stoker response anyway.

"Yeah, she was gorgeous. Say, did you ever call her? I mean, if not, you're crazy. Any girl that looks like that would definitely be getting a call from me." Chet smirked.

Hank rolled his eyes, inwardly thinking he would have to ask Mike about this later. Chet took his eyeroll as his response and turned to Marco to continue his rambling conversation. A few minutes passed and Chet's conversation turned to how strange the cap was acting.

"I mean, he's always been a little bit strange, but the chief isn't coming and he definitely seems off balance." Chet said.

"I don't know." Marco said. "He is acting different. But who knows..."

He cut off quickly when the door opened and Mike walked in. Hank snickered, who knew how much he missed as their captain, and Mike never told him about it either.

Mike raised an eyebrow as he stepped in and noticed how quiet it was. Usually when he walked into a room the conversation kept going like he wasn't even there.

"Mike," he said, turning to Hank.

"Yo." Hank said, earning him glances from his two linemen.

"Want to give me a hand with some paperwork until lunch?" Mike asked.

Hank pushed his chair back and stood. "Sure." He said, following Mike out.

As soon as they got to the office, Mike shut the door and leaned back against it.

"Cap, this is the worst!" He exclaimed, completely exasperated.

"Oh?" Hank asked. "What about five glorious days being the boss? I thought you were gonna enjoy it."

"So did I." Mike smirked. "I guess I underestimated some things. I can't remember to answer to 'Cap' half the time, and I keep almost calling you 'Cap' in front of the guys. They are already thinking I'm acting strange. And, believe it or not, John and Chet are more cooperative when I am me than when I am you."

"Wait!" Hank said. 'Back up, they do what you say better than what I say?"

"Yeah, don't ask me why. But they stop arguing if I say something, but if you say something they just wait til you leave the room."

"Well, I have noticed that I've been missing a lot more than I realized. They'll talk about lot's of stuff and not even be bothered that I'm sitting right there. Also, Chet mentioned a girl giving you her number? He wondered if you had called her." Hank said, leaning back against the desk.

"Oh," Mike sat down in the chair in front of the desk. "Yeah, I remember."

Hank went around and sat down behind the desk, neither of them bothered anymore by the fact that they looked so different from what they were used to. "Go on." He urged.

"Well, she asked me to call her and I sorta forgot." Mike said.

Hank rolled his eyes. "Yeah right."

"Well, alright. I purposely didn't, but not to be rude, I just didn't want to call her." *

"I think Chet would love to have her number." Hank smirked.

"Well, she didn't offer it to him. Besides, I don't have it any more."

"What did you do, toss it?"

"Yeah." Mike said. "Right when I got home."

"Well, I don't care. It's just funny to me." Hank snickered.

Just then there was a knock on the office door, and out of habit, Hank called for them to come in. Johnny opened the door and stepped in. He took one look at what looked like Mike sitting in the captains chair and Hank in front of the desk.

"Um, you guys role playing or something?" He asked.

"Role switching more like." Hank stood and stepped from behind the desk. Mike rolled his eyes and stood.

"What did you need John?" He asked.

"Uh, lunch is ready." Johnny said.

"Ok, we'll be right there." Mike said.

Johnny gave them one more odd look before heading towards the day room.

"Ok, they are gonna figure this out if we don't quit making mistakes." Mike said.

"On the plus side." Hank said, holding up a hand to stop him just outside the day room. "I think I figured out how to get the day off for both of us on Sunday so we can get switched back. Just follow my lead."

"Alright." Mike said.

Hank pushed the door open and stepped into the dayroom. They sat down at the table and Marco brought out the pot of stew with bread and butter and tall glasses of ice water.

"Mike," Hank said after taking a bite of soup. "Pass the salt, wouldya?"

Mike smirked. No way was cap going to purposely make the guys think he had gone crazy. "Sure captain." He said, handing him the salt.

"Ok," Roy finally said. "What's up?"

"What do you mean?" Hank asked, shaking the salt onto his stew and stirring it in. "Mike, get me a cup of coffee please."

"Cap, if you don't mind. Any more coffee and you're gonna be up until next monday."

"I don't see how that's your concern." Hank scoffed.

"I do. Remember? Sunday and all. I want to get some sleep." Mike griped.

"Guys." Roy said. "Really, what is going on? You're both acting strange."

"Don't talk to your captain like that." Mike said, trying to keep a straight face, but starting to chuckle when he wasn't even sure who he was referring to as captain.

The phone rang and Hank gestured towards it.

"Answer it, pretend to be me." He winked.

Mike stood and picked up the phone.

"This is firefighter Captain Hank Stanley... Oh Chief, how are you doing?... Now?... Ok, we'll see you then sir... Goodbye."

Mike hung up the phone and sat back down.

"The chief will be here in about twenty minutes."

Thank you so much for reading my story! Please read, review, and any errors you see I don't mind if you point them out.

* When Mike says he didn't want to call the girl who gave her his number, this is actually a reference to my previous story, Family Feud. In it his wife had left him and he had met another girl that wanted to get to know him better. He wasn't really interested then either because of the unhappy divorce he had gone through. That is also why, at the beginning of this story it mentions that his dad and he had agreed they wouldn't talk about girls unless he got serious about one. It was a touchy subject that he didn't want to talk about. Only Johnny knows what happened, so he didn't give any explanations to Hank about why he didn't want to call her. And Hank, being a good friend, knew not to press the issue. If anyone is interested in finding out more, I plan to write another story when I finish this one that will have his daughter and previous wife in it. I haven't decided if Margie will make an appearance or not, though most of the reviewers want her and Mike to get together. We shall see when the time comes :)


	4. Chapter 4

Authors Note- Hi everyone! If you are still reading this story, that is awesome. I am almost finished writing it, but there are still at least two or three chapters to go. Please read, review, cc (kindly) and let me know what you think.

Replies to reviews that I couldn't pm-

Marbo- Thank you so much for reviewing, I'm glad you are liking it. I don't usually write sci fi, but this idea wouldn't go away. I agree that Hank doesn't get enough air time. I know the show was centered on paramedics, but I think the whole crew could have been shown more. That's why I love fanfic :) I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Guest- Thank you :) I am glad you're enjoying it. I have another story I'll be writing after this one is finished, so stay tuned :)

Mike hung up the phone and sat back down.

"The chief will be here in about twenty minutes." He said casually, continuing his meal.

Marco glanced at Chet. Usually that would herald a hurricane of work trying to get the station spotless before the chiefs arrival. Hank had gone completely pale.

"What are you looking at?" Mike asked. "I'm gonna show you how to act around the chief."

"No! No man! We gotta get this place cleaned up! We can't let the chief see this place looking like this." Hank exclaimed in horror. How could Mike even consider not cleaning up the station.

"Oh, you're right." Mike said, shifting back in his chair. "Johnny, set out another place for the chief please."

Johnny jumped to do as he was told.

"So," Roy pressed. "Are we just going to ignore the fact that two minutes ago you were both switching each others names around?"

"Yeah, Hank. About that." Mike asked, knowing the answer.

"No, I'm not letting the chief think I'm crazy. I don't want the day off that bad." Hank's voice sounded panicked.

"Alright. I'll just ask if it would be ok if we both get the day off on Sunday."

"What's going on Sunday?" Chet asked.

"Nothing!" Both Hank and Mike said at the same time.

A few minutes later, they heard a knock on the side door and Mike went to let the chief in. Hank stayed behind in the day room, praying that Mike wouldn't be to casual around the chief and make him angry.

John, Roy, Marco, and Chet were in the dorm talking.

"I don't know how to say this without you all thinking I've joined Cap and Mike in being completely crazy." Roy said.

The others just waited for him to continue.

"Well, what have we noticed about Cap that is strange?"

"You mean aside from them calling each other by the wrong names?" Johnny asked with a snigger.

"Well, we have to say his name two or three times before he answers." Chet said.

"He drinks sugar in his coffee and reads the sports page instead of the news." Johnny added.

"He tried to get in the drivers seat when we got that call earlier. Completely calm about the Chief giving such short notice." Marco pointed out.

"The thing is." Roy said. "Mike is acting strange to. He is talking more than usual. Drinking his coffee black, and more of it. Reading the news. Seeming over excited about driving the engine. Freaked out when the chief calls and says he is coming over. Mike is acting like Cap. Cap is acting like Mike."

"So what are you trying to say?" Chet asked.

"I think we are getting played for the biggest fools in the world, or they somehow figured out how to switch bodies." Roy said, trying to be as serious as he could while saying it.

He could see they thought he was crazy.

"I did come into the office earlier and Cap was sitting in front of the desk and Mike was behind the desk." Johnny said.

"Mike didn't seem to remember that girl that gave him her number when I mentioned it earlier. But he did smile like it was something very interesting." Chet said, sounding puzzled.

"And Cap slipped up and called Mike 'Hank' earlier on that call to the house with the gas leak." Marco said. "I don't believe it. But it fits."

They all nodded.

"So, do you think they know how to fix it?" Johnny asked.

"I don't know. But we should really ask. I don't think Cap's wife would be pleased to find out that her husband isn't her husband." Roy said.

They all started brainstorming while the Chief visited with their captain. Or, Mike,as it turned out.

Mike opened the door and held it for the chief to enter.

"Chief, good afternoon. We have beef stew if you would like some." Mike said, extending his hand.

"Thank you anyway son, I've already had my luncheon. I was just in the area and thought I would swing by and say hello." The Chiefs casual friendliness always held a hint of a threat for Hank, who never knew if he was still angry about the whole hat burning thing. Mike on the other hand had decided to see what information he could get about the incident. After all, being Hank had to have at least one great advantage.

"Oh, Chief. You know, I've been thinking. Maybe that thing that happened. Maybe we should talk about it." Mike said, motioning towards the office.

The chief raised an eyebrow. Hank was usually so nervous about his visits that it was all he could do just to put an intelligible sentence together. He definitely seemed more confident this time. Maybe it was time they talked.

Walking into the office, the chief sat down. Mike felt it was appropriate to stand, so he leaned back against the desk.

"So, about that thing. I know I must have apologized a thousand times. But, I want you to know that it was all my fault and it was the stupidest thing I ever did. But, I've been wanting to move up in the department, and I think that straightening this out with you before I do anything else should be my priority." Mike said sincerely, watching the Chiefs eyes, the way his lips twitched and wrinkles formed around his eyes as he finally began chuckling and at last a full belly laugh came out. Mike smiled, encouraged by his mood. This was turning out to be better than finding out what had happened.

"Hank, my boy," The Chief said after his laughter quieted. "I never intended to scare you so bad, but when I found out how terrified you were of me, I couldn't help teasing you a little. Ah, but maybe it did go to far. I forgave you the first time you apologized. And I am glad you finally got the courage to talk to me about your plans for the future and get this taken care of once and for all." He thrust his hand forward and when Mike reached to shake his hand, the chief pulled him into a hug. "Forgiven, my boy. And I wish you all the luck in the world."

"Thank you sir." Mike gasped. To surprised to say anything else.

"No problem. Now, I really should be going. But you boys have a safe shift and stay out of trouble."

"Yes sir." Mike followed the chief out of the office and just as he was about to step outside, Mike remembered to ask if they could get a day off.

"Chief, would it be alright with you if Mike and I took Sunday off of work. I was going to call earlier, but you showed up and there's no time like the present."

"Of course. Let me call and get someone to cover for you. I'll let you know if I can get someone."

"Thank you, sir." Mike said.

Mcconike stepped outside and Mike shut the door.

"Yes!" He exclaimed. The guys came out cautiously.

"Everything ok cap?" Chet asked.

"Is it alright? It's wonderful! Cap," He grabbed Hank by the shoulders. "Listen to this. It's over. Forgiven and forgotten. You can take the exam to become chief. Mcconike isn't angry at you anymore. It's all over!"

"What? What are you talking about?" Hank asked. Excited, but unbelieving.

"The hat burning. He isn't angry, I told him I was sorry about it and that I wanted to be Chief someday and he said he was only ever messing with you!"

"This conversation is way to confusing." Johnny said.

"Nah, I think I get the idea. Everything is good between Cap and the Chief." Chet was grinning ear to ear.

"Mike!" Hank wrapped him in an embrace. "Mike! Mikey! Hurrah! You did what I couldn't! Thank you! Thank you!" When he released Mike from the bear hug they all stood around, grinning at each other.

"So," Mike said after a moment. "I did something for you..."

"You want to hear about the hat burning incident?" Hank asked.

Five heads nodded. They could talk about all the strange goings on later, they had waited to long for this story to finally come out.

Hank stepped out of the dayroom, Billy Nash and Fred Lawrence right behind him.

"Quiet, Captain Mcconike will be back any minute." Billy whispered. "Just get in, get the hats switched and get out."

Hank slipped into the office. Why had he ever agreed to play a prank on the Captain. Even if it was a harmless one, it still felt all wrong. But he had promised, so he glanced over at the captains perfect dress hat sitting on the desk. He quickly swapped it with his own hat. He stepped out of the office, clutching the hat behind him.

"Ok, go hide it somewhere and come back." Fred said. At that moment, the back door started opening and Hank shoved the hat under his turnout coat that was laying on the engines running board.

"Stanley." Mcconicke said, coming into the room. "When the chief gets here, I want that engine shining, do you hear me?"

"Yes sir!" Hank said, grabbing his polishing rag and starting on the fender.

At that moment, the tones sounded for a fire in an office building. Everyone grabbed their turnouts and jumped on the engine. Hank opened his coat slightly to let Fred look. The hat was tucked inside.

"I didn't have time to hide it. What do I do with it?" Hank hissed.

"Sh! Nothing. Just keep it with you. Don't lose it or Mcconicke is gonna kill you." Fred hissed.

Hank closed his coat and took a deep breath. This was just like any other run. Except of course for the Captains perfect hat shoved like a rag into his coat.

As soon as they arrived at the building, Hank forgot about the hat and geared up. Smoke was pouring from the windows and flames could be see licking at the frames.

Mcconicke spoke with the Manager for a moment, and turned to his his men.

"Alright, We've got to clear the building. We have six people unaccounted for. Stanley, pull and inch and a half and go with Dwight. Cover the first floor. Lawrence, go with Nash, clear the second floor. Stay together, keep in radio contact."

Hank grabbed the line and headed toward the doors. He opened the nozzle and began dousing the flames. Dwight stayed behind him as they moved into the dark interior of the building. The smoke made it dark and murky. It was hard to see more than a foot or two ahead of them. They started clearing the cubicles, staying as close to each other as they could, but splitting up to cover more ground. Hank saw flames were coming down the far wall and he directed the water spray towards it. As he got closer, he saw a young woman lying on her side. He shut off the nozzle and set it down. Pulling his glove off his right hand, he felt for a pulse. He found one, fast but weak. The building shook and a shower of sparks fell around them. He crouched over her and started patting her clothes down where the sparks caught. Gently lifting the limp form, he started toward the entrance. Feeling something slip, he looked down and watched in horror as the captains hat slipped from beneath his coat and fell to the floor. It was to close to the flames. He shouldn't have stopped at all with the woman, but he stomped the flames from the hat and snatching it from the floor, he shoved it inside his coat again and hurried out, heart pounding. The rest of the run, he didn't let himself think about it. They were able to find the other employees and get them safely out. When they returned to the station, he pulled Fred and Billy aside.

"What wrong?" Fred asked. "You've still got the hat don't you?"

"Yeah, but... well..." Hank pulled the hat out. He was already dreading what the captain would say when he saw his beautiful hat was barely more than a charred hat brim now.

"What!" Billy gasped. "Hank! You've killed us all! What have you done? Man, we are so in trouble!"

And they were. Between the three of them, the station had never looked better. But as a special bonus, Mcconicke had given Hank the job of cleaning the latrines for the next year "Or as long as you work under me. Whichever is longest." As he had put it. Needless to say, Hank had transferred as soon as he could. Too ashamed of his actions and miserable to stay.

"So that's the story?" Chet said. "Man, no wonder the Chief scared you so bad."

"What are you gonna do now?" Marco asked. "Are you gonna go for chief?"

"Maybe." Hank said. "Are any of you planning on burning my hat?"

"No way!" Johnny said.

"So," Roy said. "You guys switched bodies. How?"

"Yeah," Chet grinned. "If I learned how to do that you would never know who the phantom actually was."

They all laughed and headed for the day room to watch the television and play chess.

"So, Cap, what are we going to do about tomorrow?" Mike asked. He was sitting at the table with the chessboard between him and Hank, pondering his next move.

Chet glanced up from his tv show. Mike and the Cap had been surprised that the others had figured out their secret, and that they were going along with it. But they were relieved to be using each others names freely, though the others were still occasionally calling them by the wrong name by mistake.

"I don't know." Hank said. Mike moved his knight and took Hank's rook. "We need to figure it out tonight though. I can't go home looking like this. And if she sees you..."

"What about the girls?" Mike asked.

"What about them?" Hank asked, swiping Mike's bishop with his queen.

"Well, it would be alright for me to be their Dad for a couple of days, right?" Mike asked, moving his queen left. "Check." He pointed at Hank's king.

Hank frowned, studying the board. "You mean, like maybe take them on a trip so Em' wouldn't suspect or be offended?"

"Yeah, like fishing and camping. Or whatever really. Just so long as it gets them and us away from the house. Still your turn, by the way." Mike said.

They were so concentrated on their game and conversation that they didn't notice when the others moved closer, watching the curious spectacle that was their Captain and Engineer. Hank moved his queen to block the king from danger, hand hovering briefly before releasing it.

"Sounds alright to me." He said. "As long as I get to come along. The only way it'll work though is for you to go over there."

"I'll call her tonight and tell her to have their stuff ready so all I have to do is stop by and pick them up." Mike paused before backing his queen off. He saw that Hank had a bishop ready to take his queen if he took the captain's.

Hank sighed in annoyance. He had been hoping Mike wouldn't see the trap and take the bait.

"She'll want a goodbye kiss. I mean, it's a two day trip." Hank pulled his remaining rook across, blocking one of Mike's pawns from going forward.

"Maybe you should pick up the kids. She trusts me, right?" Mike smirked. He moved his knight again, eyeing Hanks bishop furtively.

"Yeah, she trusts you. But what excuse would I give for you not being there? You better come along and I'll distract her so that you can give her a kiss on the cheek. You can accept one of the same. And remember, I'll be watching." Hank said, eyes never leaving the board as he saw what Mike planned with his knight. He moved the bishop back just one space.

"I'll play my part right, you do yours. She'll never know whats happening." Mike grinned devilishly just before bringing his bishop diagonally two spaces over. "Checkmate."

"What? No! Aw man, how'd you do that?" Hank exclaimed. He looked the board over carefully before finally admitting defeat.

"He'll never learn will he?" Chet smirked, going back to the couch.

"What?" Johnny asked.

"Mike draws him into these involved conversations during the game so that he'll be distracted just as he is about to win the game."

"I have noticed that towards the end of the game, Mike always likes to start a conversation." Marco said.

"I never realized it meant he was winning though." Roy said.

"Have I ever lost yet?" Mike asked. "Anyone up for a game?"

"No!" They all chorused. Mike was ruthless when he got started playing chess.

"I swear he knows every move we are going to make before we do." Chet said quietly.

"I think he manipulates the whole game right from the beginning." Roy laughed.

"Someday. Just wait, someday, I'll beat him." Hank said.

"Though technically you did win, Cap." Chet said. "Anyway, if we had a picture of it, you would be winning."

Hank smirked. It would have looked that way.

Thanks so much for reading guys! Please remember to follow me so you'll always get updated when I post a new chapter or story. :)


	5. Chapter 5

Ok here is the new chapter. If I didn't respond to your comment I am so sorry. I am still figuring out how to use this website and sometimes I can't tell which comments I have already responded to.

Thank you so much to everyone who commented! I love to read your comments and I am always grateful to someone who can help me make my story better :) I'm glad ya'll are enjoying it so far.

"Though technically you did win, Cap." Chet said. "Anyway, if we had a picture of it, you would be winning."

Hank smirked. It would have looked that way.

The next morning Hank and Mike drove to Hank's house. Mike stepped down from the truck.

"You know," He said, shifting his feet uncomfortably. "Your wife is so sweet and friendly every time I meet her, but I have never been so scared to see anyone in my life. If she opens the door, I might run the other way."

Hank smiled. He wasn't looking forward to it either.

The door opened and Hank's twelve year old daughter, Sadie came bouncing out. Her ponytail was flying behind her as she ran forward and jumped into Mike's arms.

"Daddy! When Mom told us we were going camping, I couldn't believe it. Is this the special surprise that you told me about?" She exclaimed, beaming up at him.

"No." Mike said, taking his queue from Hank's headshake. "This is just because I wanted to spend some time with you girls."

Hank smiled. Mike had been over at his place enough times to know how he acted around the girls. They would never guess.

A moment later, fourteen year old Jessie stepped outside, followed by her mom. Mike hurried forward and took the camping equipment from Emily.

"Here, you should have let me get that." He said.

"Hey Mike," Jessie said, looking up at her dad. "Are you coming with us?"

"Yeah sweetheart. Your dad and I figured we would go camping and hiking, and on the way back, I have to swing by my dads place." Hank pulled her into a hug. "Now hop in the truck so we can get started."

"Alright!" She beamed.

Hank looked at Emily. "She seems very excited."

"She is." Emily said. "As soon as I told her you were coming, she started packing for the trip."

Mike rejoined them at that moment. "You ready to go Ha...Mike?" He asked, stumbling over Hank's name before correcting himself.

"Yeah," Hank said. He picked up the last of the gear that Jessie had set down.

Emily wrapped her arms around Mike and laid her head on his chest.

"Please be careful." She said. "I'm going to miss you."

"Me too." Mike said uncomfortably. He tried to pull away, talking to distract her from doing anything else. "But it's gonna be fun. The girls are gonna love it, and we'll be back in just three days. Don't worry about anything, k?"

She reached up to give him a kiss, and Hank quickly stepped in for his scheduled distraction.

"Alright Hank," He said urgently. "Let's hit the road, I'm starved!" Mike turned his head just as Hank called him, landing Emily's kiss on his cheek.

"Right with you." He said, hurriedly turning and kissing her on the cheek. "See you in a few days." He said, backing up and hopping in the truck.

"Emily," Hank said, wanting to kiss her, but not wanting to freak her out. "I'll take care of your husband, don't worry." *

Emily smiled. She looked a little confused by her husbands hurried exit, but she shook it off and turned.

"Oh, come here. I'll give you a hug too." She laughed and gave him a quick hug. "You take care of my girls. They look up to you a lot, so don't go leading them into doing anything crazy."

"Who, me? I never do anything crazy!" Hank exclaimed. He jumped into the drivers seat and they were off.

The girls were sitting in the back seat talking and giggling, and Hank had the radio turned on.

Mike cringed as the Supremes 'baby love' started playing.

"Can we just...?" He asked, reaching for the radio dial.

Hank shrugged and Mike switched it for a few seconds before Jessie suddenly exclaimed.

"Oh! Turn it up, I want to hear this one!" Mike turned the volume up, letting Elvis 'Last Goodbye' fill the truck.

Hank turned and said quietly so the girls wouldn't hear "That isn't what I would have done, you know."

"Why? What would you have done?" Mike asked.

"I would have told them that they can listen to their records at home, but in the truck, driver picks the station." Hank grinned.

"Or maybe just the owner of the truck?" Mike asked. "I pick."

It was late afternoon when they finally arrived at the campsite that they had decided on. It was out in the country with a great hiking trail not far away.

While the men set up camp, the girls watched from where they were sitting in a tree up above them. They kept giggling, and every time Hank walked under the tree, they would toss down leaves or twigs.

"The girls are in a cheerful mood today!" Hank said, joining Mike in setting up the girls tent.

"They're on a surprise camping trip, who wouldn't be happy?" Mike grinned.

"You see how they're acting though? Grinning and waving when I look at them?" Hank asked.

"Yeah, they always do that." Mike said. The reason had occurred to him before, but he wasn't going to bring it up.

Hank shrugged and headed over to grab the sleeping bags to put in the tent. Jessie dropped down from the tree to walk next to him.

"You need any help?" She asked.

"No, thank you. I've got it." Hank said. _She is way more helpful to Mike than she is to me._ Hank thought.

Later that evening, when they were sitting around the campfire, Hank was telling a story about when he was younger when he realized. Jessie was scooted in close with her head on his shoulder. _Oh my goodness!_ Hank thought in horror, _She has a crush on me. Or Mike, I mean._ He couldn't help but wonder how long it had been going on, but she had never mentioned it before. Mike seemed relaxed on the other side of the fire with Sadie laying on the ground with her head on his knee, fast asleep. About an hour passed, and Mike gently lifted Sadie from the ground.

"Alright Jessie, it's time you headed for dreamland like your sister." Mike said. She stood up, grumbling and came over. Mike gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and carried Sadie over to the tent. When he came back, Hank motioned Mike over. Mike sat down across from him.

"Jessie has a crush on you." Hank said bluntly, watching for a reaction. None was forthcoming. "I guessed as much. You knew, didn't you?"

"I thought she might. But she could just as easily have been being a little girl." Mike sighed, tossing a couple of twigs onto the fire.

"I hope you haven't encouraged her in it." Hank said testily.

Mike frowned. "I have only ever been a gentleman to your wife and daughters." He said defensively.

Hank stood up. "She was very cozy just now. Like you have let her do that before."

Mike noted the hint of anger in his friends voice and instantly realized that matching anger with anger would not help anything.

"Hank," He said, standing but keeping his voice and movements steady and nonthreatening. "I would never take advantage of your daughter. We are friends, sure, but that's all. She is a child, Hank. But if you feel it would be better for me to stay away, I will."

Hank paused before responding. Finally with a deflated sigh, he sat back down.

"I'm sorry Mike. It's just, I never realized she felt that way about you. I forgot she wasn't a little girl anymore. But you're right, you have been a gentleman, and I do trust you with them."

"Do you want me to talk to her when this is all over?" Mike asked, sitting back down.

Hank frowned. After a moment, he looked up. "I'll leave that decision to you. I want you to be able to be friends, and I'm sure it will wear off eventually." He rose then and moved to put out the fire. "You ready to get some sleep?"

"Sure, I'll try, but I don't know how comfortable it's gonna be with these old bones of mine... yours." He grinned and ducked as Hank took a swing at him. "Hey, watch it! You give me a black eye and it'll be yours on Sunday night."

Sunday morning dawned bright and clear and the girls were sorry that their two day camping trip was over. Between the four of them, the campsite was cleared and packed within an hour and they were on the road.

Hank glanced over at Mike.

"Well, you sure are antsy. You have been fidgeting ever since we got started." He said. The girls looked up from their wordsearch they were working on.

"What, and you're not? I mean, if anything goes wrong, anything. What happens if we aren't in the exact spot as we were before?" Mike asked, pressing his hands against his thighs to stop them from fidgeting and his knee from bouncing.

"Well, it'll all work out. Just," He glanced in the direction of the girls, warning Mike not to say too much. "just, relax. We still have another hour to go."

"Huh, I feel like I should be driving. At least then I'd have something to do." Mike pouted, dangling his right hand out the car window and staring ahead. After a long moment of silence, he suddenly sat up straight, "Stop! I need to walk around for a minute."

Hank raised an eyebrow and slowed to a stop.

Mike looked over his shoulder at the girls, "Stay here, I'll be right back." He stepped out of the truck and onto the side of the road, Hank following him.

"Ok, what's up? You're never this restless." Hank asked.

"This just isn't right!" Mike exclaimed, pacing back and forth with his hands shoved in his pockets. "It's not possible! I mean, I guess it is because here we are, but, it's not possible. What if it doesn't work? How can two people switch bodies? And what's to make us think that we can control this where we can switch back?"

"Mike," Hank said, putting his hands on Mike's shoulders and waiting until he looked up at him. "We don't know. Technically, we don't know. We got into something we don't even understand. But it is our only chance that we know of, and stressing over it isn't going to change anything. I know you want your truck back," Hank grinned, "I want my wife back. Let's just see this through and, um, keep your fingers crossed. K?"

"You're right. I just feel like all of a sudden I have all this nervous energy and I can't sit still." Mike sighed, running his hand through his hair.

"You want to sit in the back and play wordsearch with Jessie?" Hank asked.

Mike smirked. "Nah, I always hated wordsearches. How 'bout letting me drive?"

Hank hesitated before handing the keys over. "Ok fine, I guess you know the way better anyway."

Jessie quietly clicked the door shut as the men headed back over. She glanced at Sadie.

"What was that?" Sadie asked in a whisper.

"I don't know, but did you hear Mike call dad 'Mike'?" Jessie whispered.

Sadie nodded. They fell silent as the guys got in the truck and started off again, but they continued to watch for some time, casting glances at each other as the pieces fell into place, telling a story that they would have only imagined finding in a fairy tale.

"So?" Emily asked. Johnny and Roy were sitting on the couch each with a mug of coffee. Marco was standing by the window, leaning his shoulder against the frame, while Chet sat in Hank's recliner, footrest up, legs extended in front of him. Emily stood in front of them, arms crossed, looking at each of them in turn. "Oh come on! I can't be the only one who noticed that both Hank and Michael were acting strange. What are you hiding? I have a right to know, Hank is my husband!"

Roy sighed and set his mug down on the coffee table.

"She's right." He said, looking over at Johnny, who nodded slowly. "I don't know if it's what cap would want, but you are right." He stood, addressing Emily. When she had called asking them all to come over because she needed to talk, they had each wondered if it could be about this, but didn't dare to refuse her when she had always been there when they needed anything. She was like a mother to all of them and wouldn't hesitate to step up and help out.

Roy paced uncomfortably for a moment, trying to decide how to tell her. Finally, he stopped and turned to face her. "The simplest way I can think to say this, is that your husband didn't want to kiss you properly because he was actually Mike."

It took almost an hour, several cups of coffee, and all of them talking, both in turn and at once, to explain everything as they understood it. By the end of it, Emily was sitting in the recliner, staring at the cup of coffee in her hands and shaking her head. The guys waited with baited breath, not sure if she was in disbelief or thought they were all insane.

When she finally looked up, though, they saw that she was laughing. Roy took the coffee from her so she didn't slosh it out as she bent over double and began laughing so hard the tears started falling down her cheeks.

"This is insane! Insane! I mean, of all the crazy stories I've heard, this one takes the cake. Did you really expect me to believe all that?" She looked up, staring at them briefly before she couldn't hold her laughter in any longer.

Roy felt foolish, standing there, being laughed at, but he knew he deserved it. What was she supposed to think? Had he expected her to believe it? He became aware of Johnny fidgeting at his side.

"Mrs. Stanley," Johnny stepped forward and knelt down to be on eye level with her. "Mrs. Stanley, you asked, and maybe the answer isn't what you expected, but it's all we have to give you. Can you explain it any better? All we know is that they went to see Mike's dad because he somehow knows how to fix it. But you don't have to worry, when they get back, it'll be like nothing ever happened."

She nodded, slowly at first, until her whole body was rocking back and forth.

"Alright," She said finally. "Alright, if that is all I'm going to get then I'll just have to accept it I guess. But, don't think that I am not strongly considering telling the chief everything you just told me. He would be very interested to know that the station house has turned into a madhouse."

Thanks so much for reading :) This story is getting close to being finished, maybe one or two more chapters left. Please comment and tell me what you thought about it. Kind cc welcome :)


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